UAE — A Five-Year-Old's Royal Ball
This past weekend, my little girl turned 5. Turning 5 is a big one, right up there with 10, 13, 16, and 21. And as a 5-year-old, her whole world revolved around everything princess and romance. I find it terribly endearing, that kind of pure love for true love. She was already waiting for her prince to come. So for her birthday this year, we went dress shopping for a royal ball.
Finding the Perfect Dress
She had no idea why I was dragging her from store to store trying to find the perfect ball gown. She would have happily settled for the very first purple dress we saw, except it was a party dress, not a ball gown. Yeah, yeah, I know. Two days before the ball, we finally found the most beautiful dress, just stunning, except it was a size 7. No problem. Here in the UAE, there's a seamstress on every corner, and your alterations are done in about 20 minutes. I kid you not, twenty minutes later, we had a dress that fit like a glove.
The Surprise
Now for the surprise. She was dressed and ready and still had no idea she was going to a ball. Daddy came out in a suit with a tie chosen to match her dress, and they looked so great together. Then he showed her the event tickets, a horse and carriage right on the front. Her eyes lit up, her mouth curved upward, her whole face just beamed. She knew, right then, she was going to a ball.
Living Out a Real Fairy Tale
I was so giddy inside, knowing how truly happy she was. She was about to live out an actual dream. At the time, she watched Enchanted and Tangled nearly every single day, talked about them, dreamed about them, adored every second of them. And now she got to be a real princess in a real ball gown. Off they went for the evening, just the two of them.
When they came home, I got the full report on all the other princesses she'd met, the real ones, Snow White, Belle, Cinderella, Aurora. That absolutely melted my heart. Along with the princess sightings came chocolate-covered marshmallows, dancing, coloring, story time, and every other festive ball-worthy activity a 5-year-old could ask for.
Happy birthday to my sweet girl. We love you more than any fairy tale could ever say.